Thursday, February 28, 2013

I have been saying this for years–graphene would become the substrate for ‘smart’ tattoos.
An article
published at the Daily Mail yesterday evening (2/22/13), reveals
current research from Princeton that demonstrates just one new use of
the miracle form of carbon, ‘graphene’. Graphene is a one atom thick
layer form of carbon (the ’666′ element – one electron, one neutron, one
proton). In graphene, the carbon atoms form a crystalline structure
that gives the substance strength and flexibility.
Graphene uses include computer chips, touch screens, organic light
emitting diodes (OLEDs), solar cells, distillation, and many more. Now
(as I have been predicting all along), the hexagonal lattice will
provide the perfect setting for a smart tattoo. Now we have a ‘mark’
that can communicate with computers.

McAlpen’s group originally added a graphene tattoo to a cow’s tooth as a means to detect bacterial infection.

Mike McAlpen, one of the Princeton researchers who used graphene to
tattoo cow’s teeth, is now experimenting with gold and silk as a
substrate for the ‘smart’ tatt.
Though this ‘tatt’ is temporary, we might eventually see a version
that is implanted just below the outer layer of skin–still visible, but
tougher to remove. I can imagine how such a tattoo would be promoted.
We’d see an ad where a man or woman with SARS or another easily
transmissible illness (perhaps even a modern ‘plague’) is about to enter
a plane loaded with passengers that include children. A small handheld
‘tricorder’ device scans everyone as they file past–suddenly, the device
alarms. The ‘tattoo’ has told the ‘tricorder’ that the infected person
is ill, and he/she is removed from the line and sent to a hospital for
isolation. The passengers are saved!
Perhaps, such a device will also carry access to our Obamacare health
records, or it has our driving history, our work history, our online
passwords. One might easily imagine that such a ‘smart’ tattoo would
become mandatory–for the safety and security of our nation AND to make
all our lives happier, healthier, and more fulfilling.
And we could neither buy nor sell without one. But even though
Christian prophecy scholars view such cutting edge tech as ‘signs of the
times’, others simply see these inventions as a means to make their
lives easier. Consider Nokia’s recent patent application for a ‘smart’ graphene tattoo with magnetized ink that lets the wearer know when his/her phone is ringing. DNA
reading tattoos (Dattoos), a smart tattoo that displays blood sugar
levels or health warnings, a tattoo that offers dynamic artwork–and even
a touch screen that is embedded in one’s skin—all are now possible
through graphene and its silicon counterpart, silicene.
We live in an ever-changing, brave new world. Are you ready?